Contributions
2,005 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI can confirm that the jury remains the cornerstone of our system, and must do for obvious reasons. I want to see the backlog coming down, but this is a mountain to climb, and…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI recognise the sincerity of my hon. Friend’s remarks, but I have really reflected on what Sir Brian has said. There is no silver bullet in this area—I am not suggesting that the…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformWe are doing all of it, I would say. I have huge respect for the hon. Gentleman and his experience as a criminal practitioner, and of course I have heard a great many messages…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformFor the reasons of complexity that Sir Brian has set out, and because the process of passing legislation means that I think we will only see the numbers starting to fall by the…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformOf course that person would get permission to appeal if the circumstances were legally correct.02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformMy hon. Friend is absolutely right. Demand is soaring. Quite rightly, we are asking our police to arrest more, and we all know that smartphones, DNA, and phenotyping to tell the…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI refer the right hon. Lady to paragraph 9 of Sir Brian’s review, which says: “it is important to underline that greater financial investment on its own, without systemic reform,…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI am very grateful to my hon. Friend, who puts her remarks so well. Let us be clear that there are defendants playing the system, and if we continue to allow them to do so,…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI undertake that there will be an impact assessment at the point of legislation.02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI recognise that there will be a range of cases beyond those that will now sit with the magistrates, in which the sentence would be more than 18 months and up to three years.…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI understand my hon. Friend’s anxiety, but I remind him that the vast majority of these individuals will be tried by magistrates. The historical system we have is actually an…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI understand the spirit of what the right hon. Gentleman says. He is right that our courts have been starved of funds for too long, but he knows that, despite the extra investment…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformAs the hon. Member would expect, there will be an impact assessment at the point of legislation, and full scrutiny of these proposals both in this place and in the other place. I…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI remind my hon. Friend that we are increasing the uplift for barristers and their fees by £34 million. We have also increased legal aid, with £92 million for our solicitors.…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformThe day I was called to the Bar, back in the mid-1990s, was a huge moment in my life. I came from a working-class, poorer background, raised by a single mother, and I am deeply…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI am grateful for that question, and I will reflect on my hon. Friend’s point about evidence, but as I have said, I do not believe that a sunset clause would be right in this area…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformWe must protect our judges, and there is a climate of increased concern about their security because of statements—some of them made in the House—that would undermine the…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformOur criminal law cannot be set in aspic. The system that we have now largely came about as the result of legislation in 1971. Just prior to that, this House decriminalised…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformI say to my hon. Friend, who has tremendous expertise in these areas, that the evidence is contained in Sir Brian’s very lengthy review. That review looks at all the issues and…02 Dec 2025HANSARDCriminal Court ReformThe evidence is in Sir Brian’s review. This is an independent review, and I will read once again what Sir Brian has said: “it is important to underline that greater financial…02 Dec 2025